Richard van den Berg set up Guernsey’s second try. (Picture by Adrian Miller, 0653972)
GUERNSEY Seconds ran in seven tries on Sunday as they registered their first win of the JRA League season.
Captain Ray Smart, who left himself on the bench for the match, can be pleased with the result obtained by his side, which included nine players who were 21 or under, although there are still several areas to work on.
They had an early wake-up call as former Guernsey Siam Cup-winning winger Paul Livesey ran in an early converted try for the hosts.
Carl Gardner had a chance to reduce the deficit but his long-range penalty effort drifted just wide.
Within 10 minutes, though, Guernsey were off the mark as, after some sustained pressure, Layton Batiste took a quick penalty and barged over from five yards.
With the young Guernsey forwards competing very well against their larger and more experienced Jersey counterparts, the Greens soon took the lead.
Quick ruck ball was released to the backs and Richard van den Berg timed his pass to perfection, allowing Seoirse Lee to run in from the halfway line.
Gardner knocked over the first of his six conversions for the day, but Wanderers soon replied, with Livesey again dancing around the tacklers to draw level.
Guernsey then had their best period of the match as the back-row trio of Luke Gardner, Tom Ceillam and Nick Merrien broke up Wanderers play, allowing the backs to run freely at the opposition.
A neat move initiated by veteran fly half Mike Marshall allowed centre Stuart Bisson to break through and he raced fully 40 yards around a number of tackles before offloading to Rory Jones for him to score under the posts for the pick of the match’s 12 tries.
The lead was soon extended as Luke Gardner’s tackle on the Jersey fly half forced him to fumble the ball over the line and hooker Dan Guille was on hand to score his first try for the club.
Guernsey’s disastrous start to the second half allowed Wanderers back into the game and they reduced the gap to two points, scoring two tries in quick succession.
A mistake in the Wanderers backline then allowed Lee to hack through from inside the Guernsey half and he outpaced everyone to score his second.
From that point, Guernsey did not look back and could have scored four or five more tries had it not been for Wanderers’ last-ditch defence.
As it was, only two more scores came from the Greens.
First, fast handling allowed Jones space to step the last defender and score under the posts, before Carl Gardner drew the defence to put Sam Shields through a gaping hole and complete Guernsey’s scoring. Disappointingly, Wanderers were allowed in for a final score, but Guernsey were already well clear by then.
Further encouraging performances from some of the newer players in the squad, such as Callum Murdoch, Kit Hughes and the lightning-quick wing partnership of Jones and Lee, can only stand Smart’s charges in good stead for the season.JRA League: Guernsey Seconds claim first win of the season away to Jersey Wanderers
Article posted on 22nd October, 2008 - 2.29pm
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